Many thermally protective types of garment devices including robes, bags, wraps, quilts or other such thermally equipped articles have been devised for the purpose of protecting the feet and legs of persons, particularly sports spectators, from cold weather such as during late fall football games or other outdoor activities. The more thermally protective of these prior devices are quite bulky and often of complex construction which renders them expensive and difficult to use, transport and to take care of. The singular utility of these articles in protecting against the weather, the ineffectiveness thereof in providing a draftproof pocket for protecting the feet and lower legs, combined with the bulkiness and deteriorability of them, provides the user with less than optimum inspiration to use such devices, particularly when it has to be transported over substantial distance to the outdoor event. Such prior devices are shown, for example, in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 1,608,188; 1,686,588; 3,597,764; 3,798,676; 2,146,400; 2,242,130; 1,915,044; 4,932,077; 4,534,065; 2,705,325; 2,459,352; 2,433,626; and 2,230,689.
Objects of the present invention therefore, are: to provide enhanced utility thermal garment, article or device which is useful in protecting the feet and legs of spectators, side-lined participants, or others from the cold at outdoor events, and which is also useful as a tote bag; to provide such enhanced utility in an economical manner; and to provide such article which is safer and easier to use and take care of.
These and other objects hereinafter appearing have been attained in accordance with the present invention which is defined in its broad embodiment as a multipurpose protective article having both body warming and item toting capacities, said article comprising front means, back means, opposite side means, and base means, all of which are sealingly interconnected to provide a generally bag-shaped body means normally open at its top and providing pocket means within said body means, said body means being constructed of flexible thermal material and having flexible rim means extending around the top thereof to provide a substantially completely and selectively closeable opening for entry of a users feet or items into said pocket means, said rim means further being easily enfoldable, snugly around one or Two legs of the user, said pocket means being sufficiently large to easily accommodate the users feet and legs at least up to about adjacent the knee and to readily provide for sitting and standing activity without restricting movement of the feet or lower legs which might otherwise cause stumbling or falling of the user, said body means further having carrying means affixed to the exterior thereof for hand, arm or shoulder supporting of said article, and closure means on said rim means and extending along a desired length thereof for either partially or completely closing said opening and allowing said rim means, selectively, to snugly surround said legs or leg or to enclose said items within said pocket means, said partial or complete closing bringing opposed portions of said rim means into substantial weather-sealing contact, said closure means extending to a desired extent along the length of said rim means and being adapted for holding said opposing portions of said rim means together in said weather-sealing contact to maintain a snug fit of said rim means around said legs or leg to provide and maintain a substantially dead-air space in said pocket means to enhance the body heat trapping and containment efficiency of said article.
In certain preferred embodiments:
(a) the article is constructed of sufficiently rigid material to allow the article to freely stand on its base means with said rim means elevated above said base means substantially the length of a human leg;
(b) the closure means is selected from the group consisting of VELCRO (hook and loop fastener) segments spaced along said rim means, VELCRO strips extending substantially the full length of said rim means, or snap fastener means spaced along said rim means;
(c) the flexible thermal material comprises spaced inner and outer containment layers and thermal insulating material supported therebetween;
(d) the base means is substantially flat and constructed of substantially rigid material and said outer containment layer is sufficiently rigid to readily support said article in an upright, free-standing posture on said base means;
(e) the carrying means comprises back-pack type strap means adapted to extend outwardly from said body means and loop over both shoulders of the user;
(f) the exterior of said base means is constructed of waterproof, semi-rigid material;
(g) the exterior portion of said body means is constructed of substantially waterproof material; and
(h) said body means is dimensioned to provide a foot containing area of said pocket means with a front to back length of from about 6 to about 15 inches, a side to side width of from about 11 to about 18 inches, and wherein the height of said pocket means is from about 12 to about 24 inches such as to afford a number of sizes to accommodate the feet and lower legs of children and adults.